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Columbia River Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Sep 4, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

The Big River: salmon highways, world-record walleye water and desert-canyon smallmouth where the Northwest's artery pushes through the Gorge.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Flow
111,000 cfs
Air / High
71 / 76 F
Wind
ENE 3 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 14105700, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Friday
4
September 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

2/5Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Columbia River lines up a genuinely fishable day across the board. The river is running 111,000 cfs, dropping and clearing. Today brings clear skies, wind ENE around 3 mph, rising pressure near 1013 hPa and a high of 76. Water sits around 66 F for the season (estimated). With the last quarter, the solunar majors run 5:39 AM-7:39 AM and 5:39 PM-7:39 PM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Smallmouth bassGood

Peak season. Tubes, jerkbaits and swimbaits around gravel points, boulders and current seams.

Brown troutGood

Terrestrials tight to the bank; streamers through the deeper runs on cloudy days.

SteelheadSlow

First fall runs after rain: fresh chrome in the lower pools on spawn bags and beads.

Tomorrow: Similar at 78 F with a rain chance. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Sep 5, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Water and weather

Live readings from Columbia River at The Dalles.

Flow, last 30 days

USGS gauge 14105700.

108,668124,950141,233111,000 cfs08/0508/1508/2509/04

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp71 F
High / Low76 / 54 F
WindENE 3-7 mph
Pressure1013.4 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain13% cloud, 25%
Sunrise / Sunset06:30 / 19:37
MoonLast Quarter, 50%
Water temp (seasonal)~66 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunset

Next 7 days

Tap a day for the detailed outlook.

Fri Sep 4 · Overcast, 76/54 F, wind 13 mph, rain 25%

Fair or better. A 13 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

The species that matter on Columbia River: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Steelhead illustration

Steelhead

Best: Oct-Apr

Lake-run rainbows that turn tributaries into winter fisheries. First fall runs after rain: fresh chrome in the lower pools on spawn bags and beads.

Smallmouth bass illustration

Smallmouth bass

Best: May-Oct

Current and rock. Finds gravel flats, boulders and drop-offs, and fights far above its weight. Peak season. Tubes, jerkbaits and swimbaits around gravel points, boulders and current seams.

Brown trout illustration

Brown trout

Best: Sep-Nov

Wary, predatory and nocturnal by preference. The big ones eat streamers. Terrestrials tight to the bank; streamers through the deeper runs on cloudy days.

When to come: the Columbia River calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Steelhead
Smallmouth bass
Brown trout
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 66 F (estimated, not a reading).

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~66 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Columbia River today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 3

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Smallmouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 72 F, wind to 15 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Smallmouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 71 F, wind to 7 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Smallmouth bass led the card at good. High of 78 F, wind to 20 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
Only used to send you this water's report each week. No spam, ever.

Before you go

License

Oregon requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

Oregon or Washington license valid on most border water (know the exceptions); salmon/steelhead need tags and current emergency rules: check both states.

Access

Gorge access: Bonneville, Cascade Locks, Hood River, The Dalles ramps; desert pools: Rufus, Boardman, Umatilla.

About this water

1,243 miles from British Columbia to the Pacific: our coverage centers the Gorge and mid-river pools.

Fishing Columbia River: the full guide

The artery of the Northwest

The Columbia carries the Pacific Northwest's identity: spring and fall Chinook runs counted fish-by-fish at Bonneville, summer steelhead stacking in cool tributary mouths, sockeye years that light the whole system up. The Gorge reach (Bonneville to The Dalles) concentrates the drama: anglers plunk, troll and hover-fish the migration within sight of windsurfers.

Walleye of world-record class

The Columbia quietly grows the planet's biggest walleye: the current world-record class (20-plus pounds) swims these desert pools. Trollers pull bottom-walkers and bananas along the shelves from Boardman to the Tri-Cities; the John Day and McNary pools are the trophy cores. Cold months produce the giants: February's egg-heavy females are the record window.

Smallmouth by the thousand

From the Gorge east, every rock slide and backwater holds smallmouth: the John Day arm and the Snake confluence fish among America's best bronze water: 100-fish days on tubes and topwater in the desert wind. Sturgeon add the prehistoric option: keeper slots in the estuary and oversize catch-and-release above.

Seasons and the counts

The river runs on counts and rules that change weekly: spring Chinook (April-May) by emergency regulation, summer steelhead and fall kings (August-October) at the tributary cools, walleye and smallmouth always. Check the dam counts and the WDFW/ODFW rule updates before every trip: the Columbia is a managed migration, and timing is everything.

Common questions

Where do the world-record walleye live?

The mid-Columbia pools: John Day and McNary especially. Slow-trolled worm harnesses and jigs on the 20-40-ft shelves in late winter produce the double-digit females.

Can I fish the Columbia with either state's license?

On most of the border mainstem, yes: Oregon and Washington honor each other's licenses for the shared water. Tributaries and certain areas differ: read the border-water rules once and save the headache.

Is fishing good at Columbia River right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Nearby waters

Deschutes River13 miKlickitat River15 miDrano Lake23 miSandy River53 miLake Merwin65 miCrooked River72 mi
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